Sunday, February 19, 2012

This weekend I attended the Colorado People’s Assembly, a
gathering of activists from across the state who are working hard to wake up
Colorado. They have brilliant ideas and strategies – they weren’t crunching numbers to determine how
the end result will create profit for a few.

I went to the Colorado People’s Assembly to help create community
and to do a teach-in on the effects of corporate education reform. It can be hard for me to speak objectively
about these issues – these issues are wrought with pain for so many people –
yet, I recognize that the facts, the stories, speak for themselves, and often that
is all that needs to be told. I try to share this information within the confines of an hour - not an easy feat and it is inevitable that after one of these talks I am pulled to the side and told another story that makes my hair stand on end and my throat tighten.

While the Occupy movement is surrounded by those who sneer,
mock and laugh at the efforts of the 99%, I am always so honored and
impressed by the people I meet at these events – highly educated citizens,
grandparents, retired teachers and college students to name a few. As I dig through my purse to pull out all
the business cards I received (yes these people do indeed work) I am caught by
Daniel’s card.

Daniel talked to me about growing up in Detroit – how
beautiful it was – the parks and the city.
He went back to visit recently and took pictures of the places he once
knew. Now, empty lots, nothing left but
weeds and concrete. He talked about
seeing pockets of people sitting in chairs on the sides of an empty street – he said the looks on their faces told it all – they had given
up. In Michigan, where many emergency
financial managers rule, cities have been stripped of everything, many neighborhoods no
longer have access to a fire department, police department or ambulance
service. Daniel took a lot of pictures
while he was there. I want to see
them. When Daniel has another gathering
of folks from across Colorado he plans to invite me as well so I can look at
these atrocities first hand, and again listen to the narrative of someone who
knows the before, and the after.

During my session I met the most amazing college
students. They asked hard
questions. How do we get other college
students to care? How do we get them to
our meetings? This is OUR future, they
said. Yes, it is their future, and
mine, and my children’s future. It is
all of our futures.

I was asked, how do we help wake people up? I hear a lot of solutions to these questions which include coalition building, sharing the research to counter the bullshit spouting from the mouths of profit mongers, engaging in civil disobedience, writing legislation, to simply
focusing on the good in people – the passion – the relationships to community
and those we care about. I see all of these attempts being made now.

Yet, many still look the other way.

credit MissPronouncer

I am often asked, when did I wake up? This
is a discussion that activists often engage in - what did it take to push you out
into the public light? It
took Wisconsin to push me forward.
Watching a legislator place his desk on the front lawn of the capitol
during the reign of Scott Walker was my breaking point. And it was also the point at which I took a deep breath, grinned
and said, I’m with you and here we go - and once you open your eyes to what is true - there is no turning back.
If that man, pictured above, can haul his desk out on the lawn in defiance of King
Walker’s ruling - meant to keep the legislator from his constituents - I sure as hell can speak up
for teachers and children who are being slowly starved under the federal
mandates and privatizers circling their heads.

I work with a group of educators at United Opt Out National
who are asking for one act of civil disobedience. The request is to have parents opt their children out of the
state test. This request is necessary
and currently the one loophole that has not been closed by the corporate
education reformers. This act of civil disobedience will shut down the privatization of our public schools - it will allow us the space needed to regain what is rightfully ours - a whole and equitable education for all children. I recognize that
there is fear in opting out of the state test. I recognize that it requires
great bravery on the part of parent and child.
I recognize that by doing so, your community might ostracize you.

Yet, in a time when our most needy children are being asked
to pull themselves up by their bootstraps and make sure their eyes “track the speaker” while receiving massive doses of test prep – I must ask – how can we look
the other way? These children are not
allowed to look the other way. These children often face punishment and face being shamed in front of their school community.

Are President Obama's children required to track the speaker or face punishment? Do President Obama's children spend extended hours in school and attend a Saturday test prep class? Do President Obama's children get denied recess, art or PE when they score poorly on a test prep item?

I receive a lot of stories from teachers about students with
disabilities. Rebel Speducator speaks to
this better than anyone I know. She is
brave and she puts herself out there – a teacher who could get fired for
speaking her mind. I know first hand
what it is like to work with special needs students, as a sister and as a
teacher. I remember the anger my mother
felt when my sister brought home a worksheet with a sad face (drawn by her teacher). My sister reads at a very low level and has difficulty speaking; while she hears quite well, sign language has supported her efforts to communicate. I can’t imagine the anger and rage my mother
would have felt had my sister been forced to endure relentless hours of
standardized testing which would not have served her best interests. Special needs students are forced to
sit – often in tears - at desks where they fill in bubbles to test items they cannot understand
- nor would it serve them well to understand these test questions. Simultaneously, profiteers are placing more money in their
pockets.

While this happens, many look the other way.

I am reminded again and again by ever patient friends
and activists, that history shows that people have always looked the
other way. And then, when the
atrocities were reported, published and documented, everyone said – I had no
idea that was going on.

Well, it is going on.
It is going on now. And while
these atrocities may not be in your backyard at the present time, they will be
in your grown children’s backyard. I question
what our country will look like then, with leaders who grew up in a public
school system that did not prepare them for creative, critical and conceptual
thinking. How will they tackle the many problems facing our
world? I wonder how many of these children will enter the school to prison pipeline - already we imprison 25% of the world's population - how many more will there be as a result of punitive high stakes testing?

I know of parents who are “quietly” opting out of the state
test. I commend you. But, I dream of the parents who are ready to
take on the system and blatantly call for a mass opt out, in an effort to stop
the starvation methods currently being imposed on our public schools. A mass opt out would - without question - halt privatization and the punishments currently penalizing our neediest students and communities.

I am continually asked,
“I am afraid to opt out – will it hurt my school?” Your school has already been hurt
- and the level of hurt varies by school. While some children are placed in militarized school
environments, others are displaced as their neighborhood school is closed. Many
are booted out of charter schools where they didn’t quite “fit in.” Children are suffering under the mandates of
Race to the Top - incessant test prep and testing, no art, PE, music, recess or
developmentally appropriate play. If
you think standardized testing is useful and necessary, I can simply say, that
is not the case. It is the least
valuable information I have ever received about my students. My students were so much more than a
standardized test score. Need research? Go to Fairtest.org for more information - the proof is there. Are you wondering how in the world teachers will know what their students have learned? Just ask them - give them the respect they have been denied - they have many alternative assessments they use daily to determine your child's strengths, attempts and next steps. Do we want to slowly starve our schools while increasing corporate profit - or do we want to stop the madness now and regain control and demand equity and opportunity for all children in our public schools? Without the test data, they cannot punish your school. Without the test data, they lose profit -and they will be forced to listen.

While Finland focuses on equity within their schools,
America focuses on competition – with severe punishments for the losers and
major profit for the 1%. While many
look the other way, the profiteers are taking this opportunity to treat
education like a product and students like widgets – and in order to do this, it is
necessary to remove the emotional or human factor from the process. They/the corporate education reformers –
have wooed the public with words like choice, accountability, innovation and
customizable.

They use these words to fool parents into believing they have choice - but when these privatization strategies have been put into place -
while saying on your mark, get set, go – we continue to see large
groups of runners left behind. You see, that is how a race"to the top"works - and therefore, left behind, are...

those who couldn’t understand the English words that
were spoken at the beginning of the race,

those who are physically challenged,

those who are wise to the race and know it is rigged - therefore they just don't race,

those
who are tired and too hungry to run,

those who have asthma, or other illnesses, and are too weak to run,

those who are poor runners and would have
found more success demonstrating their talent with a musical instrument, a speech, a science project or art canvas,

those
who fear competition or racing and simply want to relish in the pure joy of
what it feels like to run as a child – not to win a medal,

those whose special needs are
ignored and neglected – because customization for this group simply doesn’t fit
within the race parameters,

those who are simply too slow,

those who were already losing, so they left the race and headed down the school to prison pipeline,

those who had no transportation to arrive at the race,

those who didn't make the cut to even participate in the race,

those who are counseled out of the race for fear of causing the group to lose points,

those who have no shoes and who
are simply thankful that their teacher brings them a clean shirt to wear every
Monday, taken home by the teacher on Friday, to be washed and brought the next
Monday – the last thing on their minds right now, is a Race to the Top - they
are simply trying to survive.

The children of the 1% are not racing (a.k.a. President Obama, Arne Duncan et al.). These children are enjoying an education filled with beautiful school buildings, ample resources, dedicated and respected teachers, fine arts, developmentally appropriate learning, field trips for all, and healthy food for lunch.

Is there some reason anyone reading this believes the education for the 1% is not meant for all of America's children? And, if you do believe it is meant for all - then why do we allow America's children to endure abuse while the children of the 1% thrive and enjoy learning and childhood? Why are we spending billions of dollars on testing when the schools of the 1% would never waste their money on such testing? Our president's children do not have to take mandated standardized state testing with punitive consequences for those who score poorly. When will the masses begin to question the corporate education reformers who profit - and have decided - that testing - at the expense of everything that represents real learning - is simply what our children need?

Now, in the public schools of the 99%,
they have pit student against teacher - they are all starving under the mandates - a slow gut wrenching death of our public schools filled with fear, anger and entrapment. They have created a scenario so evil I cannot fathom teaching in this country
today – now some teachers - fearful - hands tied - will say, run students run– if you don’t run I may
get fired, I may lose my bonus, I may receive a poor evaluation printed in the newspaper, and our school
may be closed – you simply must run.

These children have lost their childhood.

It is the stories of all these children, that make it impossible
to look the other way, and it is why I implore all parents to rise up and opt out - not just for your child - but for all of America's children.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Things are brewing here in Colorado – or should I say
boiling. The events over the last few months have been an eye opener to say the
least.

We can begin with the petition
I sent out this fall. This petition spoke to the negative effects of high
stakes testing and has received close to 4,000 signatures. The petition
states: Colorado school children are spending too much time on
standardized tests and not enough time learning. These tests do nothing to
actually help the students who take them. Worse yet, politicians are using the
results of these tests to justify deep budget cuts for public schools and to
punish good teachers. It's time to end the era of high-stakes standardized
tests in Colorado. We, the undersigned, demand that the era of high-stakes
standardized tests in Colorado must end immediately.

We thought Governor Hickenlooper might be interested in this
petition. I had planned to hand deliver it to him.

We also thought he might like to learn about the parental
rights bill (HB12-1049) introduced in this state legislature session titled:
Parental Rights Regarding Statewide Ed. Assessment. The bill summary states: The
bill prohibits a public school from penalizing a student whose parent
does not allow the student to take all or part of a statewide student
assessment. Further, the department of education shall not lower a public
school's attainment level on the accreditation performance indicators or
otherwise penalize a public school due to a parent's refusal to allow his or
her child to participate in statewide student assessments.

We wanted to share a second bill
which reduces state testing and increases preschool funding. HB12-1091
summary states: The bill removes the provisions of the Colorado
student assessment program that require the department of education
(department) to administer statewide assessments in certain subject matters to
students in certain grades. Statewide assessments administered by the
department shall not exceed federal requirements for the administration of
assessments of students. The bill states that for the 2012-13 budget year and
for each budget year thereafter, the general assembly intends to appropriate to
the department, for the purposes of the Colorado preschool program, the general
fund savings realized in implementing the provisions of the bill.

It seemed the right time to request a meeting with Governor
Hickenlooper. So we did. He works for us - right?

The request for the meeting simply stated: We would
like to meet with the Governor regarding upcoming education policies, budget
priorities, and concerns regarding children and education. During this time,
we'd like to present a petition with more than 4,000 signatures from parents
across Colorado requesting a reduction in state testing. While I've listed a
date and time according to the required fields, we will accommodate a meeting
at any date or time within the next two months. It is important that we meet
directly with the Governor. Thank you.

I thought I'd just let you know that Governor
Hickenlooper declined to meet with parents. The proposed meeting date and time
was open ended so this is a clear refusal to hear to the concerns of parents. Education
decisions will continue to be made by those working outside of education - big
business and government. Please inform your members that the request for 50
parents to meet with our Governor for 30 minutes, was denied.

Funny how the state of Colorado feels more like a kingdom
than a democratic state built on democratic values. I am
exaggerating? I don’t think so.

So, let me continue….

Recently I wrote a blog about Tom Boasberg, Superintendent of Denver Public
Schools. Tom Boasberg lives in Boulder. His kids go to school in
Boulder. Yet, he represents and serves the children of
Denver.

David Sirota writes, “Boasberg, you see, refuses to live
in the district that he governs. Though having no background in education
administration, this longtime telecom executive used his connections to get
appointed Denver superintendent, and he now acts like a king. From the confines
of his distant castle in Boulder, he issues edicts to his low-income fiefdom —
decrees demonizing teachers, shutting down neighborhood schools over community
objections and promoting privately administered charter schools. Meanwhile, he
makes sure his own royal family is insulated in a wealthy district that doesn’t
experience his destructive policies.”

If you are unfamiliar with Boulder, here’s a brief synopsis
from my previous blog on Boasberg:

NeighborhoodScout has the following to say about Boulder: "Boulder
home prices are not only among the most expensive in Colorado, but Boulder real
estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America. Boulder is
a decidedly white-collar city, with fully 90.59% of the workforce employed in
white-collar jobs, well above the national average."

Boasberg and Hickenlooper have something in common. You see,
Hickenlooper is also a millionaire with a net worth
estimated between five and ten million.

It seems that Governor Hickenlooper is as detached from his
constituents as Boasberg. He has declined to meet with parents – when the
meeting time and date were left open and flexible to meet his needs. What
about our needs?

I wonder what it will take to turn the tide on the corporate
kingdom ruling our state?

I, for one, am not waiting around to bow down to
Hickenlooper, Boasberg, or any of the millionaires running our state with
little understanding of the needs of the 99%.

The politicians. The leaders. The media.
Have. Been. Bought.

Would you like to regain some of your parental rights – or
better yet – let’s restate that – there’s no need to regain them, they’ve
always been there. We simply trusted, while unknowingly, decisions were being
made to dismantle our democracy. We need to reclaim what is ours.

The petition and the bills are the catalyst to allow us to
regain what is rightfully ours. The governor and the superintendent work
for us; we are the taxpayers paying their salaries. Don’t forget who is
in charge here.

Come to the capitol on February 9th to
share your testimony at the committee hearing regarding the need for the
Parental Rights Bill (HB12-1049), Room 0112, State Veterans & Military
Affairs (upon adjournment of House Assembly - plan to be there around 9:30
a.m.). Come to the capitol on February 23rd to share your testimony
regarding the need to reduce state testing and expand preschool placement for
at-risk children (HB12-1091) - also Room 0112 - and also at 9:30 a.m.

Let the bills and the petition be a catalyst to return a
whole and equitable education to all children. Currently “choice” within
our public schools represents only choice for a few. Let’s begin by
halting high stakes testing, so that the corporate education reformers no
longer have the data to punish our students, teachers, schools and communities.

And then, let’s do what our leaders should have done. Let’s
remind Colorado about the foundation of our democracy: equal opportunity
for a whole education for all of Colorado’s students. And let’s make it
happen. If you take away their data, they will be forced to listen.

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I am a writer, activist, gardener, stellar organizer, former public school teacher and current chicken herder. I like to cook incessantly and drink a lot of coffee. I write about education and have recently expanded my activist work into other spaces - stay tuned for more.